I'm disappointed in Microsoft. I've been an avid supporter of the 360, but I cannot justify the Xbox One in my living room. So, the PS4 will be my next console. I never thought Microsoft would think restrictions equal profits. - 3 years ago

Kinect Impressions

It's extremely late. Work looms on the horizon of tomorrow, and I know I should be in bed. However, I stayed awake to pick up Kinect and Your Shape: Fitness Evolved from the local GameStop. And I'm happy I decided to get this device tonight.

First, the immediate downside(s) of Kinect. This thing requires a decent amount of free space. If you own a home, a category I don't fit into, then you are probably going to be fine. I live in an apartment that is fine for playing Rock Band, but it isn't big enough to really accomodate a lot of jumping around. So, I had to spend the first five minutes of my Kinect experience rearranging my furniture. I know I'll have to shift things to permanently make enough free space.

Also, Kinect seemed to have a little bit of difficulty capturing my feet. On the main Kinect screen, I seemed to have broken ankles.

Some people might wonder why I decided to pick up Your Shape as my first Kinect game. The answer to that mystery is this: I'm not a dancer, I don't want to drive a car by leaning and stepping forward, and I don't have a pressing need to pet an imaginary animal or punch an imaginary enemy. Your Shape seemed like a feasible game that could be useful beyond the video game realm.

The game worked great. It tracked my every movement without problem, the camera never once misread my action, and my movements always translated into a desired result. After 30 minutes with Kinect and Your Shape, I was satisfied with my purchase. I see a great deal of promise in this peripheral, especially since it does a good job of truly tracking what I'm doing.

Voice recognition is spot on, and setting up Kinect to recognize me on sight was easy and painless. Overall, it seems to be an intuitive piece of hardware that could truly explore some innovative ideas as developers seek to use this technology in ways beyond the initial gimicks that comprise most of the launch line-up.

Kinect may not be for everyone right now, since the game offerings may not appeal to core gaming audiences. However, if you want to involve yourself directly in a gaming experience and you are comfortable with the initial price point of the peripheral and a true Kinect game, then I would suggest giving it a try. I'm looking forward to where Microsoft will take this tech, and I'm happy to be a first-day adopter.